Israeli forces detain director, other staff of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza

GAZA CITY, Palestine

The Palestinian Health Ministry announced that Israeli forces arrested Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, and other staffers on Saturday, one day after Israeli troops set fire to the area's only major health care facility.

The arrest came after an Israeli military offensive targeting the Kamal Adwan Hospital and its surroundings.

Israeli troops forcibly evacuated patients and medical personnel from the hospital on Friday, and several were detained before setting fire to its large sections, rendering it completely inoperable, according to a ministry statement.

The attack on Kamal Adwan Hospital forced the closure of the northern Gaza Strip's last major medical facility.

Israel has killed more than 45,400 people in Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023, cross-border attack by Hamas, reducing the enclave to rubble.

Last month, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi